Tom Bowman
Tom Bowman is a NPR National Desk reporter covering the Pentagon.
In his current role, Bowman has traveled to Syria as well as Iraq and Afghanistan often for month-long visits and embedded with U.S. Marines and soldiers.
Before coming to NPR in April 2006, Bowman spent nine years as a Pentagon reporter at The Baltimore Sun. Altogether he was at The Sun for nearly two decades, covering the Maryland Statehouse, the U.S. Congress, the U.S. Naval Academy, and the National Security Agency (NSA). His coverage of racial and gender discrimination at NSA led to a Pentagon investigation in 1994.
Initially Bowman imagined his career path would take him into academia as a history, government, or journalism professor. During college Bowman worked as a stringer at The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass. He also worked for the Daily Transcript in Dedham, Mass., and then as a reporter at States News Service, writing for the Miami Herald and the Anniston (Ala.) Star.
Bowman is a co-winner of a 2006 National Headliners' Award for stories on the lack of advanced tourniquets for U.S. troops in Iraq. In 2010, he received an Edward R. Murrow Award for his coverage of a Taliban roadside bomb attack on an Army unit.
Bowman earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from St. Michael's College in Winooski, Vermont, and a master's degree in American Studies from Boston College.
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NPR has learned that the Pentagon has also approved the expansion of the U.S. Naval Base at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, for the same purpose. -
President Trump indicated that he may send an additional Patriot missile system to help Ukraine defend against the continuing barrage of Russian drones and missiles.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has defended the U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites, saying the attacks were the most complex and secretive military operation in history.
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The U.S. military bombed key nuclear sites in Iran over the weekend. Afterwards, President Trump warned Iran not to strike back — but Iran has launched missiles at a major U.S air base in Qatar.
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Dubbed "Operation Midnight Hammer," the American military strikes on nuclear facilities in Iran were complex, with the details closely held.
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The Pentagon provided a briefing on the U.S. airstrikes on Iran Sunday morning, after President Trump took direct action for the first time in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.
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The memo obtained by NPR says troops would be used in activities, including in "night operations and rural interdiction," as well as "guard duty and riot control" inside detention facilities. -
As part of its "warrior ethos," the Pentagon has ordered the Navy to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, named after the pioneering gay rights icon.
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NPR correspondents recap how funding cuts, layoffs and leadership and policy changes in the second Trump administration are affecting the Departments of Defense, State and Health and Human Services.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth continues to find himself in controversy. He shared details with his wife and brother minutes after being updated on the Yemen strikes by a senior military official.
